SUPREME COURT NOTEBOOK

Duke lacrosse players' appeal turned down WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court won't hear an appeal from three former Duke University lacrosse players who were among those falsely suspected of raping a stripper. The players, Ryan McFadyen, Matthew Wilson and Breck Archer, wanted the court to say their constitutional rights were violated by the Durham, N.C., police when officers made the lacrosse team give DNA samples and examined their bodies in an attempt to find evidence to use against them. All of the charges that were filed in the case were dismissed. The three players who appealed were not among those charged. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said police can use a significantly lower standard than "probable cause" to justify a court order compelling a search and DNA swabs. The high court will not review that decision. Justices won't hear appeal in Rasta photos case WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court won't hear an appeal from a photographer who said that painter Richard Prince violated his copyrights with paintings and collages based on the photographer's published works. The high court on Tuesday refused to hear an appeal from Patrick Cariou, who said Prince used pictures that were taken by Cariou for his book "Yes, Rasta." Cariou took the pictures during six years he lived with Rastafarians in Jamaica. Prince altered and incorporated several of the photographs in a series of paintings and collages titled "Canal Zone," exhibited in 2007 and 2008. But the federal courts said Prince transformed most of the pictures enough so that Prince's art could be considered a "fair use" of Cariou's work. The Supreme Court refused to reconsider that decision. Court declines to hear Oklahoma ultrasound case WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court is declining to revive Oklahoma's strict ultrasound law for women seeking abortions. The justices said Tuesday they will let stand a state Supreme Court ruling that struck down the 2010 law passed by Oklahoma's legislature. The measure required women seeking abortions to have an ultrasound exam and then have the image placed in front of them while the provider described the fetus. Last week, the justices opted to let stand an Oklahoma court decision that struck down a separate law restricting drug-induced abortions. The case is Pruitt v. Nova Health Systems, 12-1170. Published: Thu, Nov 14, 2013